John Taylor III

Professor Wertz-Orbaugh
Uwrt 1102-005
9/28/15
Mental Health of Holocaust Survivors
The mental health of people who witnessed something traumatic is something that really
interests me. One could argue that one of the most traumatic events in history is the Holocaust,
and thinking of how the survivors coped in the aftermath sparks my interest. For that reason,
focusing on mental health of Holocaust survivors was the first inquiry topic that came to my
mind. More specifically than just mental health, I want to look into the survivors who developed
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD, as well as compare the ones who struggle daily to cope
with the pain to the ones who keep a level head. While looking into these topics I hope to find
out what moments in particular has them scarred for life, and also how they manage to deal with
their pain so many years later.
From the moment I was assigned the project I knew I would either talk about the mental
health or a specific group of victims treatment. After the day spend in the library searching for
information, I found more books and articles touching on mental health and decided that was the
topic for me. As I stated earlier, the idea of someone surviving an event as nerve wrecking and
horrifying as the Holocaust intrigues me, so naturally I thought, How can they live a normal life
again. One particular thing that put my mind on that question is the interview we watched and
reflected on. I remember how Reva Kibort, for the most part, was strong while talking about

events that would almost certainly leave the average person traumatized. The only time she cried
is when she talked about her father.
Although I havent given them too much thought thus far, two questions I plan on asking
myself as I look through more books and articles are:
1. What are the keys to putting all of the tough times behind you?
2. What happens when you simply cant get past the struggles youve been through?
These questions will just be my starting points because they are questions that require the
perspective of a survivor who has maintained post Holocaust as well as one who possibly
suffers from PTSD. So far, the writings I have found, mainly the interviews, touched on
living post Holocaust, so I feel that these two basic questions will be a great starting point
getting into my deeper inquiry question.**

Peer Response Reflection: Michelle Connell

After reading Johns inquiry proposal, it is clear to see that he wants to focus on the topic of
mental health of Holocaust survivors, similar to Reva Kibort. I find this topic to be very
interesting and believe that there are many different ways in which he could go about discussing
this topic. Using personal testimonies similar to Reva Kiborts would make the inquiry very
interesting, and more personal with the reader of his paper. Although he was able to state what
his proposal was, I was not sure what his specific inquiry question was. Maybe an inquiry
question could be How closely does the Holocaust affect its survivors mentally and physically,
and then base more information and findings off of that. Overall, I find this topic to be very
interesting and think that he could go many ways with it!

Peer Response Reflection

After reading Michelles proposal I clearly understood what route she wanted to take and how
she wanted to go about doing it because she made it very clear. Her topic is intriguing and she
clearly knows what she needs to make her final inquiry question. However, I made a few
suggestions, mainly how she could add a few more details. Answering each question I thought
she could go a little more into how she felt